Bean Juice Water - Aquafaba

[Ejeff]

I was just wondering what most people do with the liquid after they cook beans from scratch. Has anyone done any research into whether this liquid is health promoting? Also curious if most people here just toss the liquid or they use it in soups etc. Do you use one type of bean liquid, but not another such as black beans versus chickpeas? Would be interesting to know what places like True North and the McDougall Program do. I assume they cook beans from scratch as it’s so much more economical.

I wasn’t sure if I should post this in the Food thread or the Health thread. I came across an article that seemed pretty convincing that aquafaba is not good for our health. We are told to rinse canned chickpeas before using them too. We are told to soak the beans, then drain and soak some more. In the past when I’ve cooked beans in a regular pot, I have scraped away the foam as it developed. Not sure why I was doing this, seems it was a health related thing. Now with Instant pots we are told we don’t need to soak. Which method is best for health?

I have a few few jars of chickpea aquafaba in my freezer and I’m now thinking of tossing them. I had planned to use them as the broth when making veggie soup. Perhaps I would be better off just using dried herbs and spices with water or veggie broth to flavour my soups.

I want to take the option that is most health promoting.

Thanks
Erin

[Daydream]

Hi Erin,

This might sound gross but if I cook black beans or pinto beans, I sometimes will drink the extra liquid as a broth. I actually like it. If I'm not in the mood for it, I will discard it. I always cook beans in my Instant Pot because it's so much easier than stove top!

The night before I cook my beans, I wash/rinse uncooked dried beans and then soak them overnight before I cook them in the morning. Then in the morning I pour off the water that the beans soaked in and use fresh water to cook the beans in my Instant Pot. I have never read or heard that aquafaba is not good for our health. I think the reason why most recipes say to rinse canned beans before eating is to rinse off the excess sodium if the beans have salt added. If I use canned garbanzo beans to make hummus, I always buy unsalted beans and I just drain the liquid in the sink and use the drained beans to make hummus. I don't drink garbanzo bean liquid because I'm not fond of it.

I don't see how the bean broth could be bad for our health when there are are tons of bean soup recipes that have all the cooked bean broth in the soup.

When I make a soup, I don't use aquafaba in the soup. I just use veggie broth or water to make the soup (or the liquid called for in the recipe eg: carrot juice, tomato juice, etc.).

I hope Jeff Novick and others share their thoughts on this topic!

[DynoDan]

Flatulence?

[pundit999]

Indian cooking use beans of all types and beans such as lentils, kidney beans, chikcpeas etc are eaten daily in many partf of India.
The liquid is never thrown away.
There is no need to throw away the liquid. Cooking is easier that way and the taste is better. And of course the liquid is nutritious.
If you are worried about stomach discomfort, soak the beans several hours ago in water, throw away the water and refill a few times.

[Vanilla Orchid]

Acqua faba doesn't have much taste, but it is an excellent substitute for eggwhite. For some reason it works best if it has been frozen. Of course you thaw before you use it. It can be whipped into stiff peaks and folded into batter for recipes that call for stiffly beaten egg whites. Yes, you can even use it to make merengue, although it takes a very long time to stiffen up.

I also use it to brush the top of baked goods when I want a glossy browned finish, such as on my vegan Wellington, my signature Thankgiving day dish. I brush the top with aquafaba (not beaten) and sprinkle with sesame seeds before baking.